The art of sailing has been practiced for thousands of years and is generally well known throughout the world. Most sailing craft utilize one or more masts which project upwardly from the hull and have at least one sail attached thereto. In small boats which are operated by one person, the need to constantly adjust the setting of the sail with respect to the direction of the wind while controlling the rudder and handling the various lines associated with the boom and the sail, is a difficult and strenuous operation.
Various sails and mast configurations have been proposed and used to attempt to simplify the operation of sailing craft and/or to improve the efficiency of the sailing craft. The applicant is aware of the following which are considered pertinent to the present application.
______________________________________ Inventor(s) U.S. Pat. No. ______________________________________ Bell 24,090 Norcross 163,940 Ljungstrom 1,375,400 Ryder 2,147,501 Szakacs 2,724,356 Laurent 3,173,395 Robin 3,195,494 Hiscock 3,693,571 Jamieson 4,044,702 Berge 4,603,648 Stampe 4,723,498 Biagioli 4,922,846 ______________________________________
Bell discloses a shortened mast bench set at a greater than standard angle to the horizontal plane. A spar having upwardly curved ends is secured to the mast. The mast is connected to the mast bench. A single sail or separate sail may be fitted to the mast.
Norcross discloses a mast composed of two or more timbers which are joined at their tops by a common cap. The bottoms of the masts are mounted to a revolving platform which is received in a socket in the deck.
Ljungstrom discloses a mast which can be inclined together with the sail, either ahead or astern in the longitudinal direction of the boat. The lower end of the mast is attached to rollers running on a curved bar.
Ryder discloses a triangular sail which is rotatable 360.degree. about a single center mast, mounted amidship. The mast is an assemblage of several parts.
Szakacs discloses a single curved mast mounted on the stern of the boat. A triangular sail is attached to the mast. The sail is framed by a strip of wood on the foot and by steel cables on the sides.
Laurent discloses a triangular sail mounted to a center mast of a catamaran and rotatable 360.degree. about the mast. The mast is supported by shrouds which are mounted fore and aft. The rudders and the sail are controlled from the center of the boat.
Robin discloses a sail control for vessels wherein a sail rig includes a flexible sail membrane, drawn taut within a triangular, peripheral frame by means of cables and operated by winches. The sail may rotate through 360.degree.. The frame is connected to the hull and is slidably mounted on guide rails. The frame may also pivot about a base.
Hiscock discloses a sail rig for many types of vessels including a monohull, a catamaran, a trimaran, a hydrofoil, an ice boat, and a land yacht. The sail is symmetrical and is a spherical isosceles triangle with a curved leach, a curved luff, and a curved foot. A boom is provided to swing freely about the lower end of the luff spar, and a sail is mounted with its foot adjacent to the boom and its luff adjacent to the luff spar.
Jamieson discloses a single sail suspended at its head from the apex of a tripod mast. The foot of the sail is attached to a spar. The spar is rotatably mounted atop a stub mast which is centrally located with respect to the tripod mast.
Berge discloses a catamaran type sailboat with several inclined mast-like elements which have a common upper connection. The masts are pivotable at their lower ends.
Stampe discloses two masts with a common thwartships plane which are joined at a mast head. Each mast is provided with a respective main boom and two main sails.
Biagioli discloses a masting which comprises three (3) poles to form a pyramid with a triangular base and connected upper ends at the vertex. The masting also comprises a plurality of stays to which sails are applied. The boat may be a catamaran.
Thus, despite interest in sails over a period of many years, there still exists a need for a simple system for a sail which enables a sailing craft to be operated by one individual with a minimum of effort and which provides increased maneuverability to the sailing craft.
Further, the simplified sail permits the design of the sailing craft to be simplified and improved so that the sailing craft can be more easily handled under various conditions of wind.